Shepperton Preschool

Year-round garden play and a Sensory room give Shepperton Preschool two different ways for children to explore: space to move outside and resources for sensory support indoors. This charity preschool sits in the park off Shepperton High Street, with a practical emphasis on getting to know each child before planning their support. The personal detail matters here.

At its 19 October 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged Shepperton Preschool Outstanding overall and found safeguarding effective. Behind that judgement were concrete experiences: children inventing stories, tackling physical challenges and taking responsibility for small everyday jobs. Those observations belong to October 2023, rather than describing every child's experience today.

There are 32 places in total. Children start from around 2 years 7 months, with the precise starting point depending on their birthday within the academic year, and stay until they leave for school. Attendance can be sessional or full day, within a term-time calendar of 38 weeks.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework (EYFS) shapes planning and observation: staff use its areas of learning to follow children's development and decide what support they need next. Here, interest-led play sits alongside that assessment. A child's interests provide a starting point, while observations help practitioners plan the next steps rather than offering the same activity for the same purpose to everyone.

In October 2023, children used story cubes and miniature play figures to build their own stories, with adult conversation encouraging them to speak and listen. Books and drawing or writing materials offered other routes into language. The useful distinction is between simply hearing a story and having opportunities to contribute ideas, tell one and make marks with a purpose.

Physical experiences had their own challenges. In October 2023, children persevered with scissors and explored a rope swing, logs and a sensory activity trail. These were opportunities to practise control and make decisions about risk, alongside the quieter concentration needed for cutting. Outdoor activity was part of learning, rather than just a break between indoor tasks.

Two named songs belong to the everyday routine. The Lunchtime Song introduces washing hands and getting ready to eat; The Good-Bye Song marks the close of the preschool day. Familiar musical cues give children a recognisable sequence around transitions that otherwise depend on repeated adult instructions.

Outdoor and Community Life

The gardens are accessible throughout the year. Out There Trees supplies donated bark and logs for the adventure garden, giving the outdoor space a tangible connection with a local business. These materials complement the preschool's emphasis on exploring outside.

Community contact extends beyond the garden. Children visit the local library, and police officers and firefighters come into preschool to introduce their work. These encounters connect play and conversation with people children may recognise in their neighbourhood.

The Summer Fiesta takes place in summer, alongside regular coffee mornings and participation in the village fair. Grandparents' weeks and special weeks for Dads invite relatives into preschool activities, with other family members welcome too. For parents, this offers several ways to take part in preschool life rather than relying only on formal meetings.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who helps them settle and follows their learning. The Child Profile asks families about important relationships, routines, communication, health and what helps when a child feels stressed. It gives staff practical information they can use, including preferences and support needs that might otherwise take time to discover.

An All About Me booklet brings that information into a form the child can share. Families make it together using familiar people, pets and favourite places; after sharing it with the key person, the child keeps it in their own tray. The booklet remains accessible as a comforting reminder of home. Settling has a concrete resource, as well as an allocated adult.

Learning Journey records combine observations, examples of children's work and developmental assessments. Families discuss them at parent meetings and can request to see them at other times. At the Leavers' celebration, the record goes to the child, creating something to keep from their preschool years.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The Sensory room, visual timetables, sensory circuits and wobble cushions form part of support accessible across the setting. A SENDCO and SEND staff work with families around additional needs, including communication and emotional support. These are specific mechanisms, rather than a general promise that every difficulty will be solved in the same way.

Where needed, a Surrey Support Plan sets out goals and the family's involvement, while specialist support can include an individual educational plan and coordination with other professionals. The preschool can make referrals, seek additional funding for staffing or resources, and help families apply for an Educational Health Care Plan when required. The sequence gives parents a role in planning, rather than placing assessment entirely in staff hands.

At its October 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that collaboration with speech and language therapists and play therapists helped establish useful learning targets, and that children with SEND participated with high motivation. This is a dated assessment of how support worked in practice, distinct from the mechanisms offered now.

For the move to school, staff share a summary of each child's achievements and communicate with the receiving setting. That keeps transition centred on the individual child: what they have learned, how they communicate and what support may help them next.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8.45am to 5pm from Monday to Thursday and 8.45am to 12.30pm on Friday. The preschool follows Surrey County Council term dates and opens for 38 weeks each year. Families need to fit that term-time calendar around their own arrangements during school holidays.

Sessional and full-day attendance are offered. Once a child has settled, an extended day can continue until 5pm. The Early Bird Club provides an earlier start and must be booked 24 hours ahead: it runs from 8.45am to 9am for Working Parent Entitlement and fee-paying attendance, or from 8.45am to 9.15am for Universal funding, with ad-hoc booking possible.

Universal funding is offered across 2.5 days, with funded hours of 9.15am to 3.15pm from Monday to Thursday and 9am to midday on Friday. Pickup for Universal-funded children is set between 3.30pm and 3.45pm; the contribution requested for that additional period is voluntary and is not a condition of receiving the 15 funded hours. Working Parent Entitlement hours run from 9am to 3.45pm on Monday to Thursday and 9am to midday on Friday.

Enrolment forms can be collected from preschool or emailed to families, then printed and completed by hand. Enrolment enquiries can be made by telephone or through the contact form.

Getting There

The address is Glebeland Gardens, Shepperton, TW17 9DH. The preschool occupies a park location off Shepperton High Street, opposite the Greeno Centre, and parking is available.

Funding and Paid Extras

Accepted entitlements are Universal 15 Hours Early Education Funding, Working Parent’s Entitlement from 9 month olds and Free Early Education Funding for Two Year Olds (FEET). The Working Parent entitlement remains subject to eligibility, and Shepperton offers it from age 2 years 7 months, with priority for children in their preschool year; the entitlement's title does not mean this setting admits babies. FEET also depends on meeting its requirements.

Funding follows the preschool's term-time operation. Private hours and extended attendance carry charges, and families receive a funding sheet each half term explaining how their attendance is covered. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Non-food consumables attract a separately requested contribution for funded hours; this is presented as a voluntary contribution, with part contributions also welcomed. The Wish Tree is another way to help: its apples identify items the preschool needs, making donations of supplies possible alongside fundraising.

Meal provision is charged separately and includes morning toast, a hot two-course lunch supplied by Zebedees and an afternoon fruit or vegetable snack; an additional cold tea can be bought for extended attendance, while families opting out supply their child's food. The preschool's policy prohibits nuts, including in food brought from home.

• Term-time attendance. The 38-week calendar and Friday's 12.30pm closing time need to work alongside your family's weekly and holiday arrangements. These are substantial practical differences from care that runs throughout the year.
• Funded hours and collection. Universal funding has a different timetable from Working Parent Entitlement, including a later pickup window than the funded period. At a visit, discuss the pattern you would use and how its voluntary contributions and paid additions would appear on your funding sheet.
• Support shaped around your child. The Sensory room and Surrey Support Plan provide concrete starting points for additional support. A visit is an opportunity to discuss how your child's routines and communication would inform their plan.
• Food and allergies. There is a choice between separately charged meal provision and food supplied from home, both subject to the no-nuts policy. Families affected by allergies should confirm current handling arrangements before choosing their food option.

Shepperton Preschool suits families seeking sessional or full-day attendance during term time, with early starts and an extended day offering additional flexibility once a child has settled. Its recognisable strengths are the garden, detailed settling resources and structured ways to involve families in additional support.

The October 2023 Outstanding judgement gives this offer a strong inspection foundation. The practical decision is equally important: different funding timetables, separately charged food and a short Friday need to fit your household. For families comfortable with that calendar, the combination of community activities and individual planning makes a persuasive preschool offer.